Kobe eats his words in Portland

PORTLAND, Oregon — Kobe Bryant was a gracious host to his media guests but failed to make good his promise that he would humble the Portland Trailblazers on their home court at Rose Garden here Wednesday.

Bryant erupted for a game-high 35 points that went for naught as the Los Angeles Lakers bowed to the Trailblazers, 99-93, and remained teetering on the brink of NBA playoff elimination.

Bryant, the league leading individual scorer who’s a Nike top endorser, mingled with some Nike media visitors from the Asia-Pacific at a posh Portland hotel earlier in the day, promising a good show for them in the Lakers-Blazers tiff.

As usual slippery in his sleek Kobe 1 Up-Tempo Nike shoes, Bryant did come up with good stuffs on the floor but the Blazers had their own show.

Darius Miles scored 11 points, including a breakaway slam off a steal on Smush Parker with 10.9 seconds to go as the Blazers avoided what could have been a season-high seven-game losing streak.

Main man Zach Randolph made 20 points and eight rebounds, guard Steve Blake fired 19 points and center Brian Skinner had 10 rebounds and nine points for the Blazers who stopped the bleeding with their 19th win against 38 defeats.

Portland’s struggle on court was compounded by upheaval off it. Billionaire owner Paul Allen has made it known that the team is bleeding money, and wants some kind of public-private partnership to keep it afloat.

The move stunned many Blazers fans and reportedly prompted NBA commissioner David Stern to comment, "It’s our preference, our strong preference, to have the Blazers in Portland, in Oregon, playing at the Rose Garden and being able to be a financial success."

The season-series between the two teams now stands at 2-1 in favor of the Blazers who have just strengthened their frontcourt with their acquisition of Skinner from Sacramento as part of a four-team, nine-player trade at the deadline last week.

Bryant got off to a slow start, hitting just 3-of-13 shots from the field. He, however, was 6-of-6 from the free-throw line for 12 points in the first half.

A number of fans showed up in Bryant’s No. 8 Lakers jersey, including Filipino TV sports personality Jinno Rufino who was harassed by some Blazers supporters after the game. "Dude, have a tight sleep," Rufino was told by a burly hometown fan.

With Randolph, Blake, Miles, Skinner and Juan Dixon taking turns in delivering the goods for Portland, the Blazers took control most of the way, erecting a 73-57 lead on a dunk by Travis Outlaw late in the third.

But the Lakers came charging back in the fourth quarter, moving within three points thrice with the last at 90-93 on a short stab by Lamar Odom.

A missed jumper by Blake gave the Lakers the opportunity to come even closer or even tie the count with a trey.

Alas, Parker was stripped of the ball by Miles who went all the way for a thunderous jam that sent the crowd in a frenzy.

The Lakers eventually yielded the game as Bryant missed a three-point attempt in the next play.

Bryant’s 35-point game, though, was enough to satisfy his media guests.